HAPPY NEW YEAR!

As i put away the Christmas decorations today, the urge to make a new wreath for Valentines day hit me. I have browsed the Valentine ideas on the web and am now going to venture into my stash and find the makings for a new Valentine wreath.

There. I have made a resolution to blog more regularly about my creative surges and urges, and so far I'm good. I will be back in a few hours or maybe a few days with my results on my latest venture.

Happy New Year to everyone. May God be with you in all your days as we are now one year closer to His final return to earth.

Praises~

Victoria

Keeping Christ in Christmas

It is that time of year again! We are celebrating the coming of Jesus Christ to earth. Jesus gave up His heavenly throne to come to this earth to teach us about God, His father, and our Heavenly Father. Jesus lived on earth so that he could show us what real love is. Real sacrificial love, that we can only know through knowing him. Jesus came into the world, born of a virgin. He then suffered a torturous death, and rose again after 3 days to give us the hope of eternal life. If you know Jesus, then you can look forward to His second coming when He will gather all who believe in Him to join Him in eternity in the new Jerusalem.

Merry Christmas and many blessings to you in the new year!

Where Does the Time Go?

Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God,  and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15)

Such a simple message, and the only way to keep our joy is to know Jesus and to walk with Him daily!

I can hardly believe it has been over four months since I blogged. I have been in my second semester of school to earn a bachelor degree in business AND working full time. My old apartment flooded at the end of July in a torrential storm and I moved to a new apartment, but just across the street in the same complex. Because of the move, my sewing supplies are now a little more organized, and now I can put together some new creations.  My sewing machine is in the shop, but I have the fabulous thrift store find I bought for my daughter-in-law, an old Signature, from M Wards. It sews like a charm, better than the newer Sears Kenmore that is now in the shop. I unintentionally abuse my machine by sewing through heavy fabrics and the tinker shop says the needle shaft is aluminum and it cracked. Well, I was working in the sewing machine department at Sears when I found that gem of a bargain on closeout for  about $60.00. Now the tinker shop says that the repair on my $60.00 Kenmore will cost $170.00. Sheesh. Whatever! They just got themselves a trade-in, that is if I can work out a deal with them. I just haven't had a chance to get back to the shop to check it out. I would love to just find another gem just like this old Signature that I ( I mean my daughter-in-law) is now blessed with.

Speaking of blessings, the picture on the right is four of God's greatest blessings to me; four of my six grandchildren, gathered together last Christmas, 2010. I have two new blessings, a baby grand daughter and a baby grandson, who were born in May and June, respectively.  Yes I will add another picture of them too. They are my newest inspiration, and have given me the motivation to carve out some time to create some more hats and bibs like this:  

Visit my Etsy Shop to see more of my original creations.

May God Bless You and Keep You in His Loving Care!

Decorating on a Shoestring

You can give any room a new look by just tossing around a few pillows here and there. 

My latest creative surge has sent me sifting through my scrap bag to see what fabric will make some pillows that can possibly be just the lift a room might need or just a soft place to go to when life is getting just a bit rough. A pillow with a favorite character, flowers, birds, or any favorite animal is a great gift.  How about that graduation gift that you'll soon need, or a bridal shower gift to encourage the bride and groom to soft pillow fights for fun. Here are some of my latest projects.

Click on the pictures to see where to buy.

Chintz Floral with Fringe

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Cats and Kittens Very Soft Fleece and Flannel

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Today I finished sewing a pillow together any small child will love. Blue Jean Teddy Bear, still waiting to be stuffed,  edged with eyelet gathered to give a very finished and decorative touch.

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When my baby was still a baby (17 years ago) she loved fingering the eyelet edge on the little quilt I made her when she was falling asleep. That eyelet edge was her favorite part of the blanket.

(From Mommy's Brag Book - Sorry this is not for sale).



Next time you lay your head on your favorite pillow, let it remind you of the promise of God in His holy word,  that you can "Give all your cares to Him, because He cares for you". 1 Peter 5:7

Family, Church, School

"Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.
 One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts". Psalm 145:3-4


I have a break from my school for a few weeks. Thank you, Lord. My thoughts are on my baby's high school graduation and what that means for her as well as myself.  She is a beautiful young lady who excels in everything she does. She has been in band, volleyball, track, honor society. Am I bragging? I think I am just a bit.  In just a little over a month she will have a new "hall pass" to independence. Me? I have a celebration to plan and so there are announcements, food menus, decorations, and entertainment to plan.
As we plan a celebration for graduation,  my two older children are blessing me with two more grandchildren. Then I will have six grandchildren. God is growing my family by leaps and bounds! The blessings are incredible. I just wanted to take a minute to thank God for all of His many blessings and wish the same for each and every one of you!
Blessings~
Victoria

Etsy

My Bags

at Etsy

Handmade Fun Foam Christmas Ornaments

Tonight I finished my handmade fun foam ornaments for my father, who is 3 states away from me in assisted living, and I wanted to send him something special to decorate his little tree to let him know how special he is. These ornaments are cut from fun foam. In the cold depth of winter, I give myself a pick-me-up working with color. I had all the supplies on hand for these in my stash.

I started with 4" x 6" foam. I just used the top of a large mug to make an indentation in the foam and then cut the circles with my scalloped scissors. Then I folded each cut circle in half and cut out a small hole in the center. You can cut as many as you like, making two pieces for each ornament. On each piece i used glitter fabric paint to make the names of my family, my kids and grandkids, with moms & dads on one side, and the kids on the other. When the paint was dry, I placed the two sides together with the design outwards. I used curling ribbon to make a small bow and stitched it on one side of the wreath ornament at the bottom. I had some small shiny beads that I stitched on, as not only a way to add some more bling, but to hide the stitching. I also stitched a loop on the top of the ornament to match the bow, also adding a bead to hide the stitching. 

Hope you have fun making these ornaments too.

And remember to keep Christ in Christmas!

Have a blessed holiday!